Pirates’ Marte suspended 80 games for PEDs

NEW YORK (AP) — Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Starling Marte has been suspended 80 games by Major League Baseball after testing positive for a performance-enhancing drug.

The league said Tuesday that Marte tested positive for the steroid Nandrolone. He will be eligible to return in mid-July.

Marte was an All-Star for the first time in his career in 2016 and moved from left field to center field in the offseason after winning his second Gold Glove. The 28-year-old is hitting .241 with two home runs and seven RBI this season. The Pirates began Tuesday 6-7 through the first two weeks of the 2017 season.

Marte says in a statement that “neglect and lack of knowledge led to this mistake.”

Pirates president Frank Coonelly says he is “disappointed” that “Starling put himself, his teammates and the organization in this position.”